Mary TallMountain

Mary TallMountain (1918-1994) was a poet and storyteller of mixed Scotch-Irish and Koyukon ancestry.[1] Her works deal with the interplay of Christianity with indigenous beliefs and the difficulties of her own life. Before her mother died from Tuberculosis[2] she was adopted by a white couple where she faced prejudice among whites. Her adoptive father molested her; she struggles with alcoholism causing the theme of struggle and healing in her work.[3] She began her working career as a legal secretary, then owning her own stenography business only to lose it from cancer and move to inner-city San Francisco. She began writing around age 50 when she was a contributor to the Native American Renaissance.

Early Life

Mary Tallmountain was born in Nulato, Alaska, to a mother of Russian and Native American heritage, and a father of Irish-Scottish descent, who was an American soldier. She was born to the Athabascan tribe, which is believed to be one of the original tribes that came over to Alaska via land bridge from Asia.[2] Mary also had a brother two years younger than her. Tallmountain's mother had Tuberculosis when she had both her children, and decided to give them both up for adoption, knowing she would inevitably die from TB; so that her children would hopefully have a future free from TB. Because of a decision by the village council, Tallmountain's younger brother stayed, and she was given to the government doctors white family, the Randales. She and her adoptive family moved to Oregon. This transition was very traumatic for Tallmountain as she was taken from her native land, people, language, and culture.[1] Her adoptive father was abusive, and molested her. She was not allowed to speak her native tongue, and was bullied by the white school children she attended school with. When the Great Depression his in the 1930's, her and her adoptive family became poor immigrant workers and moved to Portland, Oregon. And shortly after Tallmountain graduated high school, he died of heart failure. When Tallmountan was 19 she married Dal Roberts, who died after only three years of marriage. Later, her adoptive mother, in 1945, suffering from Parkinson's and Diabetes, committed suicide. Tallmountain then left Portland, Oregon, and went to Reno, Nevada to pursue a career of a legal secretary.[2]

Career

After Tallmountain moved to Reno, Nevada and trained and worked as a legal secretary she began to drink to deal with her struggles in the past. After taking into account the damage all the alcohol was doing to her body she quit drinking and started her own stenography business.[2] She was then diagnosed with cancer in 1968, while she overcame this, she lost her business. After losing her business she moved to a poor area pf San Fancisco called "Tenderloin." She began to keep a journal, as her adoptive mother had her do when she was a child. After she started receiving a disability pension she was able to teach, write, do readings, and follow her true passion: writing. She published works such as "Nine Poems," and "Good Grease." Much of her work follows the themes of spirituality of Native and Christian though, and out connectedness to nature. Tallmountain writes "Coyotes' Desert Lament," where the narrator becomes a coyote, exploring Native thought how all creatures and people are connected.

"Suddenly I am coyote too, Nose a wet black tremble. Hound and I bunch together Among warm grey bodies Calling our brother home."[4]

She was diagnosed with cancer a second time in 1978, then when she went into remission she located her biological father. He was also battling cancer, living in Phoenix, Arizona, where Tallmountain spent the last few years of his life with him.[2]

Late Life

Tallmountain was located by an Alaskan poet and given a grant to travel and teach to local schools, communities, and prisons.[2] Then in 1987 she founded the Tenderloin Women Writers Workshop, to support local women in expressing themselves through literature. She suffered a stroke in 1992, which left her with Aphasia, the inability to express or understand language. She then stopped doing any readings or teaching, but continues to write until her death in 1994.[2] He work tilted, "Listen To The Night" was published in1995 by Freedom Voices.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Freedom Voices
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Gale Contextual Encyclopedia of American Literature, vol. 4. Gale. 2009. pp. 1543–1546 – via Gale Virtual Reference LIbrary.
  3. ↑ Linda E. Cullum (2004). Contemporary American Ethnic Poets: Lives, Works, Sources. Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 279–281. ISBN 978-0-313-32484-0.
  4. ↑ Jones, Lindsey (2005). Poetry: Native American Poetry and Religion. Gale. p. 7226 – via Gale Virtual Reference Library.
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